Religion notes

Wednesday

May 16, 2007 at 12:01 AMMay 16, 2007 at 4:20 PM

On April 20, at the home of Ramin and Diana Abrishamian, the Bahá’í Community of Needham elected its first Spiritual Assembly. This new nine-member governing body will oversee the community’s affairs for the Bahá’í calendar year, which began on April 21.

First Spiritual Assembly electedOn April 20, at the home of Ramin and Diana Abrishamian, the Bahá’í Community of Needham elected its first Spiritual Assembly. This new nine-member governing body will oversee the community’s affairs for the Bahá’í calendar year, which began on April 21. The members of the Spiritual Assembly, all Needham residents, come from five different national backgrounds: USA, Chile, India, Iran and Mexico. They are: Claire Levesque, Ati Vafai, Parviz Vafai, Keith Durand, Cecilia Durand, Houman Vafai, Sahba Fanaian, Diana Garcia-Abrishamian and Ramin Abrishamian. Members of the Needham Bahá’í community also include Diana Sandgren, Gabriela Abrishamian, and Julia Tyler.“Members of a Spiritual Assembly do not have any special privileges or authority,” said Cecelia Durand. “As stated in the Bahá’í writings, Spiritual Assemblies, as a body, are responsible for serving as ‘channels of divine guidance, planners of the teaching work, developers of human resources, builders of communities and loving shepherds of the multitudes’.”The Bahá’í Faith has no clergy; its affairs are administered by a network of elected lay councils at the international, national and local levels. Bahá’í national and local Spiritual Assemblies are elected each year during the Festival of Ridvan. This holy season, observed from April 20 to May 2, commemorates the period in 1863 when Bahá’u’lláh, the prophet-founder of the Bahá’í Faith, publicly proclaimed his mission as God’s Messenger for this day.There is no campaigning or nomination of candidates in Bahá’í elections. In a prayerful atmosphere, each member votes, by secret ballot, for the nine individuals they believe will best serve the needs of the Faith. A member must be 21 years of age to vote or to be elected.The Bahá’í Faith is an independent, monotheistic religion. It accepts the divine origin and common purpose of all the major world religions, and teaches that God has revealed a new message in this day to establish the oneness of humanity. Founded in Persia (present-day Iran) in the mid-19th century, it is now the second-most geographically widespread religion, with more than 5 million adherents from virtually every nation and ethnic group on earth.

Golf tournamentSt. Joseph’s Parish of Needham is holding its annual golf tournament on May 23 at Stow Acres Country Club. Registration is at 8 a.m., with a Florida Scramble shotgun starting at 9 a.m. The total cost is $140, which includes golf, cart, continental breakfast, a Texas barbecue after, “goodie bag” and golf prizes. The parish is looking for players, sponsors and in-kind donations. The parish is more than 3,000 people strong and is an active community member, sponsoring such programs as boys and girls basketball leagues, summer theater productions, elementary and middle school education and adult computer classes. Please contact Kurt Steinkrauss at 781-449-2973 or ksteinkrauss@mintz.com.